


That's Just Strange

by Sirius_A



Category: LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: Drama, F/F, Implied Sexual Content, Mystery, Romance, Underage - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-08
Updated: 2019-06-12
Packaged: 2020-04-12 16:41:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19136023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sirius_A/pseuds/Sirius_A
Summary: Kim Jiwoo is a typical high school girl trying to live her life as normally as she can...until a ticket back to her mother and a strange diary appeared in her life.





	1. Into The Beginning

It was Saturday, a day of both fast and slow progress of time boxed in metallic walls and neon lights, the sound effects of spell casted and sword clashings, it was a good time to be in a digital world. Colors flashing reflected on a boy’s face, on his eyes saying that he won’t slow down with the way his fingers punched the keyboard letters, or the way he maneuvered his illuminated mouse.

 

Jiwoo sighed audibly, brooding that she may be noticed by the boy stuck with his digital character now fighting off enemies with its magical skills; she finally left his side and passed by rows of alike individuals stupefied in front of their flashing screens like her boyfriend, unable to tell them apart. Jiwoo entered the adjacent arcade room.

 

There were a lot of loud arcade booths with the same loud mouths playing it. She had frequently stayed here whenever her boyfriend’s unflinching in his games, she probably had played all the games. Jiwoo’s eyes lit up, concaved on one corner was the virtual reality game that she never got tired of playing, her surroundings was replaced by the digital map of saber beat, she chose Loona’s Hi High to play with. 

 

The beats went high and higher, the way she liked it, she had done this over and over again, she had even managed to put the original choreography with her saber’s movements, she giggled, replacing her frustration over her boyfriend’s stupid face. She was lost in time, the blocks heading her way fast, in different pairs and ways, the wall features that she must evade guided her where to go, the virtual map rushing forward instead of the blocks. There were only colors bright red and blue from the black backdrop, rushing at her like cars when a flowing white appeared with eyes hanging above it. Jiwoo screamed, slashed it with her saber sword and took out her virtual reality headset. Her heart raced against her chest.

 

 _‘What the hell’_ She thought, dumbfounded, in a split of second she thought how crazy it was, and how real it was. Did the game just glitch at her? But why was a pair of eyes still vivid in her head?

 

Jiwoo’s boyfriend arrived just as she ghastly turned around, holding two cones of ice cream. She smiled seeing it, trying hard to clear her head with it “Wooyoung…ohh….is this your way of sorry? That’s so sweet!” she squealed, snatching the cone fast

 

“We..well yeah… yeah I’m sorry…”

 

Eyes on the soft dairy, Jiwoo forced a grin at her boyfriend.

 

“Shall we go?” She asked.

 

Jiwoo turned her gaze outside when she had ran out of story to tell her boyfriend, and it’s not like he could keep it anyway, he was driving and he could only nod. It was almost midnight and a few people lingered outside. The street light stretched in glowing red and orange, amidst it, Jiwoo suddenly caught eyes with a person standing by the sidewalk in plain white cotton dress, she held on it as the car drove past. She let go of her breath that she realized she was holding in.

 

A shiver ran down her spine. 

 

“You okay babe?”

 

“Ye-yes…I’m...I’m good” She wasn’t, it brought her back to the arcade earlier, strange but Jiwoo doesn't want to dwell much on it anymore and hold onto her boyfriend's arm instead.

 

"Your hand is cold...are you sure you're fine?" 

 

Jiwoo just gave him the biggest smile that had managed to save her from countless times of situations she doesn't want to linger on and was glad that Wooyoung didn't push it anymore.

 

They pulled out in front of their residence and her father’s car simultaneously just parked on their lot and was now standing idly by it. Her father stared passed their car’s windshield and straight to her eyes. She gave Wooyoung a peck before leaving his car, hoping that peck erased the frown on his face. He drove ahead as soon as Jiwoo shut the passenger’s door close.

 

“Inside” His father said as cold as the midnight air.

 

But Jiwoo doesn’t want to confront, no, not with his father, he could scream at her when there is a chance where she doesn’t have anywhere to go, but she has a bedroom, it has a door and a lock, so even before her father could say anything, Jiwoo shut her door close to any open conversations. She threw herself on her bed, her father usually doesn't pester her, both have learned how to just focus on each other's business. Time will just take care of it, she thought.

 

It was now Monday with the familiar smell of coffee lingering in the air, Jiwoo hadn't left her room since Saturday night and just watched movies all day and ate pizza, but now with school, she has to finally face her father again, she needed to drink some water and ease her parched throat and maybe eat that amazing egg and bacon she was just sniffing. Just as she expected though, her father was on the table, sitting at the head chair, reading the morning newspaper like the typical suburban father that he is.

 

Her plate of breakfast was already served on the table for her, weird she thought, her father never really showed any kind of nice gesture to make it up to her or anything. Jiwoo sat in front of it, she ate silently, as peacefully as she could as the newspaper cover his father’s face. Jiwoo was halfway done when she realized there was also something else beside her plate. It was an envelope. She didn’t want to catch any attention or deliberately ask for it so she just went as dead silent to open it.

 

“Yangsan?” Jiwoo shot her own feet with her loud voice and turned towards her father.

 

In a whip, her father put his newspaper down, gaze automatically glaring at his daughter “Your mother’s birth home…you’ll be staying and going to school there now”

 

“What? I can’t”

 

“There’s nothing you kids can’t do now though, isn’t it?”

 

“I-I’m still attending school here…it’s not even vacation yet…you’re making this hard for me” Jiwoo can feel the tears threatening to leave her eyes. The white envelope on her hands, her damning reality, she won't accept it.She couldn’t even imagine exchanging hello with her mother yet, how could she live with her? How could her father be this harsh on her? Does he really not care anymore? 

 

His father’s eyes were dead behind his specks. Jiwoo had gotten used of the lack of emotion, unnoticeable to non-existence, but his gaze now felt cold as a motherless winter holiday “You need a new environment, you’re growing up hard headed, indulgent and irresponsible”

 

“And sending away your kid is responsible?” Jiwoo quivered, she was so mad.

 

“Don’t talk to me in third person Jiwoo, do you think that makes you sound right and logical? I’m sending you to your mother, behave so I have the reason to bring you back here and graduate in the school of your choice. I’ll send you your monthly allowance, learn how to appropriate it”

 

"No! I hate you!" 

 

Jiwoo threw herself on her big soft bed, her plushies shooting up as she did so. She took one of it, pulling a rabbit plushie close to her chest and digging her chin to it, seeking consolation from its softness. She was beyond sad, she felt as though insignificant, she called on Alexa to play her default brooding song whenever she sulks.

 

_Time, hidden by a mysterious secret_

_Every minute, every second_

_I want to narrow the distance between us_

_We will be aligned now_

 

Jiwoo sobbed and laid helplessly on its melody and closed her eyes while wondering how her friends would look for her in their school knowing she didn’t attend any classes for today. Her father is as hard headed as his stone like heart, there is no way he will change his mind, she figured on how to say goodbye to her friends. She could ask Gyuri to send her to the airport. And about Wooyoung, their relationship was just beginning to blossom, they had not really learned much of each other yet, and she fears that being in a long distance won’t help their current relationship. It’s gone too soon before she could process it. Jiwoo sent the two of them a text in regards to everything first then went to posting in her social wall, her troublesome classmates sneaking on using phones reacted to it first. Individuals she hadn’t interacted before showed their sadness for her, for the very least Jiwoo felt better and continued scrolling on her phone, until her eyes closed on her.

 

A glare from the radiance of the morning sun passing through her window that was exposing the flying dust hit Jiwoo’s face, catching her attention, she placed her phone down and stared outside her window. The different colored roof of their neighbor’s house, and the way some of it are fading, the different height of the house, the trees that loom over them, the fallen leave on the roofs somehow looked uniquely enthralling, had it always looked like that? She can’t really remember.

 

Their doorbell rang, it went three times before Jiwoo could pull her weight up from her bed, she wasn’t expecting anything or anyone today, and her father never invited anyone.

 

“A package for Ms. Kim Jiwoo”

 

Jiwoo went to open the door, the parcel box was immediately handed to her and was asked to sign, however there wasn’t a name where it came from, only it said that it came from Yangsan, it was in a shape of a medium sized book, and true enough, when she opened it curiously on her bed, a leather bounded book was revealed with  _‘The Flower Kingdom’_ engraved on its cover. On the very first leave, it says:  _‘Property of Gowon’_  and under it is the word  _‘Yangsan’_

 

To her amusement, it was actually a diary with accounts of several people, but the writer designated them with aliases. However, the place, as she had guessed is its real name and wondered interestingly hard, if it is the same place where she is ought to be exiled to.

 

Jiwoo fell asleep with the diary under her arms after reading it all day, and the next moment she had it with her again was when she was already on the plane where she would be carried to where it was written, a bouquet of flowers given to her by her best friend Gyuri was accompanying it in her arms.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have nothing much to say but that I hope this chapter piqued your interest to anticipate the next chapter. ohhh and the Wooyoung here is Ateez's, not 2PM's Wooyoung.


	2. Welcome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jiwoo's arrival to her mother's hometown.

_‘Being fallen into a weird world, even if you tell me so, I’m fine’_

 

The car’s window suddenly rolled down, taking Jiwoo by surprise, she looked at her mother quizzically who pulled her hand from the car’s control panel. What a child, she thought.

 

“No one in this town drives with their window’s up…because the air outside is better” Her mother then reached her arm outside, palms wide open, arm riving the thin air, hand basking on the air’s material, a smile on her lips.

 

Jiwoo scoffed and turned her head away unable to so much look at her mother for over ten seconds, but she must agree with what her mother said though, as the conditioned air was replaced by the warm rush of air entering inside the car while they drove pass endless patch of land, some covered with green, some brown, some gold wheat.

 

It was indeed different, just different, in a good way though.

 

Still no words were wished to be breathed from her lips, Jiwoo didn’t feel doing so. Her mother, Taeyeon, as she remembered her name so, had welcomed her with a weary smile and a loose hug from the airport; their years of no communication had manifested itself as a thick air stopping them from trying to recover it.

 

She pulled her weight dropped embittered on the chair’s backrest towards the window, head propped on her arms on its frame, and the wind grazed her face warmly as her hair continuously get swept back, like fingers running on her scalp.

 

“It’s not a perfect place…but you’ll enjoy this town Jiwoo, like I did”

 

Jiwoo was losing herself to the scent of trees mixed with the castaway whiffs of the bay, when that pang of bitterness soiled it inside her “Enough to leave your child I guess?” She couldn’t take it well, to hear her mother being all…normal.

 

“I have my mistakes Jiwoo…I’m not without guilt and I apologize, let me make it up to you eh?….won’t you try leaving your city attitude for awhile?”

 

Jiwoo frowned, though she didn’t talk back. It was just so strange to talk to her mother.

 

A vocal heavy song cut the silence inside the car, it was a female’s voice over an acoustic accompaniment, all the other instruments muted except for the guitar, highlighting the soft country vocal of the singer, drifting through the wind.

 

She closed her eyes.

 

Jiwoo never hated her father even if he deliberately threw her in this new place, his three seconds of side hug before she departed told her that maybe, he did after all hesitated letting her go. He is a man of few words and never knew how to show affection at all that when he gave her his 16th birthday gift for her, the grey hoodie folded on her lap now as they parted, made the thought of him getting rid of her because she was an annoying little brat thrown out of the crevice of her brain. He must have a different reason sending her back to her mother, hopefully, she’s right.

 

The welcome arch of Yangsan came into view, though if Jiwoo had not known beforehand her destination was, she wouldn’t have read what the arch said, with the arch being all covered with crawling vines and the lettering of the town’s name being all fragmented and colors fading. Built out of bricks and a bridge next to it after, it finally sank in, how she’s already truly in a different place…out of the city…out of familiarity.

 

Houses and buildings were a rare sight unlike the city and were replaced by trees and hills. Right at a rising slope going towards their residence, Jiwoo looked outside and finally saw a condensed area of the town with the bay next to it. The orange hue of the afternoon basked it strikingly, she couldn’t help but stare at it.

 

If they were in a city, she’d probably have a hard time distinguishing what and what with all the high rise and identical buildings in every corner of the city, but here she figured that the rectangular building on top of a hill not that high from the rest of the buildings must be the school she would be attending, the town’s hall in the middle and a church not far from it.

 

They stopped in front of a peach colored two story house enclosed with clean white painted wooden fence. Taeyeon went on to take her luggage to take it inside when Jiwoo saw an unfamiliar woman by the door…smiling brightly at her mother and a welcoming one on Jiwoo herself, the woman’s eyes pushed closed by her smile, then Taeyeon kissed her by the lips.

 

Jiwoo gasped and turned around.

 

It stroke her like a lightning

 

Twelve years she counted, twelve years that she was clueless why her mother suddenly left her without a word.

 

And now she knew why…

 

Just like that.

 

“Jiwoo…”

 

She could hear her mother calling her in worry, her voice trailing, wishing it would make her turn around, but she couldn’t. Instead she tried to hide herself from her mother’s sight behind her own mother’s pick-up truck and slid down on the ground, pulled her knees towards her chest and hid her face behind it.

 

Jiwoo would like to call her father and ask her to take her back…as desperate as she could, but she didn’t have the strength, whirling inside her were mixed emotions, only she felt so isolated and alone.

 

The feelings rushed inside her like bullet train that she had not enough time to process it and produce a tear.

 

She was just left dumbfounded is all.

 

Was she sent here just for her mother to tell her the twelve years overdue of her reason of abandoning her that December night? Was the truth supposed to hit her like a bulldozer? Yes she had wondered for years of the many why, for years she sought to feel that familiar feeling of what was left when she was five years old with her mother kissing her cheek happily because she was singing cutely.

 

She sought those feelings like she was a desperate love struck girl, and she does remember Gyuri telling her that in irony because some mean girl also said it at her face.

 

 _‘You’re so desperate….sis at least show some self-respect’_ That girl said to her…whom, Jiwoo didn’t realize before, was her crush’s girlfriend before giving him a letter of admiration.

 

And the strange thing is, Jiwoo wasn’t tired seeking for it, deep inside, she’s still hoping.

 

Jiwoo took a glance inside the house, looking if her mother and partner were inside and when she saw there was no one inside, she entered her mother’s place, slowly, with heavy steps still debating whether to accept the fact that she’d have to live here for a while. The entrance of the door opened straight to the living room, couches filling most of its space to invite people to have discussions there. The walls were paneled, decorated with degree certificates and other medals, cabinet tops were lined with family portraits and pictures, there was one in which Jiwoo guess have all the family members, and they actually have a big number, but the house was empty of these people. Her father never really mentioned the side of her mother’s family, it was mostly his’.

 

A frame of an old woman was in the center of this collection of portraits and pictures, she had not remembered seeing any of them.

 

There were soft rumblings at the second floor, Jiwoo figured it was her mother and whoever she kissed earlier. Jiwoo picked up the picture frame of the old woman and suddenly, a lone firefly alighted on the frame, wondering where it entered, she glanced at the kitchen’s window at the end of the room, it was opened, she went closer.

 

What she saw behind the house was a vast space of grass, cutting that space was the long line of trees that fronted the woods. Now in the city, Jiwoo didn’t see much of fireflies, but she’s sure they don’t fly in great coordination that forms a waving line leading to the woods; it was like they were waiting with the way they were idly floating.

 

It was enchanting to see, surely she couldn’t take her eyes off of it but Jiwoo wasn’t just going to pass through the grass like frogs and other insects don’t live there. Though it felt fairly strange, like something was urging her to get close to it, follow where this line of fireflies ends.

 

And so Jiwoo did, two strangers inside the house or a bunch of fireflies that would give her a silent company, she chose the bright insects instead; she walked the courage across the patch of grass with audible sound of crickets and frogs croaking everywhere. She followed the line of fireflies skewing pass the trees, they light up the path, making it easier for her to see where she must put her foot on. There were shuffling on her sides and emerging from it were squirrels, their heads tilting to the sides looking at her with curiosity.

 

When Jiwoo took a step to continue her path, the squirrels also moved, when she stopped, they also stopped. Jiwoo giggled, she found them entertaining so she just let them be, and the squirrels followed her.

 

The fireflies was taking her deeper into the woods, thoughts of going back gnawing her brain, but she couldn’t, she was enchanted to see where the line ends.

 

Jiwoo stopped and ran her fingers on a tree trunk standing at her side and felt a flash of familiarity. It felt like she had done this before, felt like she had crossed pass lines of trees from a distant memory. She kept on walking.

 

The sun had fully set and the stars had bathed the sky, but Jiwoo had just largely realized it when the line of fireflies ended and was greeted by a defoliated area; she gazed up, the moon was staring back at her, soon she saw herself standing at the center and realized she was not alone, there were lots and lots of birds perched on the tree’s branches visible to her eyes, and when she looked around, dots of lights were twinkling around the woods like the stars itself went down. Like she was in the center of the galaxy and the stars are orbiting around her.

 

Jiwoo was confused, what are these all of a sudden, she raised her head, staring at the night sky looking for answers, the wind blew around her and strange enough…Jiwoo heard it faintly…the wind carried with them a soft magical melody.

 

Jiwoo didn’t wonder long as she twirled around the melody, and she smiled, for the first time that day.

 

The stars that night were starting to align.

 


	3. First Flutter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jiwoo was given a choice.

‘She’s become my sky and my ground…while I flutter in the middle...’

 

The sky had not much cloud in there, nothing much to see, it was just clear, in fact so very clear, Jiwoo had not seen such clear blue sky.

 

Pancakes, Jiwoo could see pancakes on the sky. Her taste bud still enamored by her breakfast meal. ‘Damn Tiffany makes such great pancakes, why do I have to be such a foodie?’ Taeyeon was keen to inform her that it was indeed her significant other that prepared the breakfast and Tiffany telling her that it was the best recipe in her repertoire to which Taeyeon wittingly say ‘out of two recipes’ in which the other was a sunny side up egg.

 

Tiffany is pretty, in fact so pretty that it was intimidating, but Tiffany cleared it out immediately with her people’s charm and street knowledge of where to get the best dresses at and where most young folks hang out, then gave her chocolate bars to give to help her make friends, to which Jiwoo was planning to do anyway.

 

Taeyeon was giving her a car ride to school, so there was nothing to do but gaze at the sky and compare it to the dull blue of the city’s. Her mother didn’t talk for the whole duration of the ride, instead letting the songs on the radio do their job.

 

Pancakes and dresses won’t cut it

 

“I’ll pick you up” Jiwoo’s mother offered to her.

 

“I’ll take the bus later…I’m 17 I’ll take care of my own self” Jiwoo said, not looking at her mother and getting out of the car instead.

 

Taeyeon could only mutter a soft ‘of course’

 

Jiwoo wished to know what it means but her mother already drove off.

 

Wearing her new uniform on, Jiwoo braced herself across unfamiliar faces. She had been given an assigned class section before her first day but she really didn’t have any expectations for it. Not really knowing what to do, she sighed in relief when she crossed path with the principal and remembered who she was. The principal had a kind smile, she liked that, it calmed her when she was being interviewed by her before.

 

The principal opened her classroom’s door and introduced her to their homeroom teacher “Good morning Mr. Choi, she will be your new student, she’ll be joining us from now on”

 

A strong smell of masculine perfume greeted Jiwoo when Mr. Choi raised his hand to gesture for her to get closer in the middle “Thank you Mrs. Jung for bringing her here” He said.

 

The principal bade the whole class a goodbye and told them to be welcoming of Jiwoo.

 

All eyes were on Jiwoo, her homeroom teacher had asked her to introduce herself. She smiled at them, the very best she could muster and introduced herself. When she saw one girl smiling back, her smile widened.

 

“Where should I sit?”

 

Jiwoo asked, she felt rather being guided to than moving on her own, scanning her eyes across the classroom, looking for more friendly faces.

 

Mr. Choi smiled warmly at her “Right next to where you think is the cutest”

 

Jiwoo whipped her head towards their homeroom teacher, mouth gaping open. Did she just get played? Mr. Choi’s smile that she thought was warm at first turned playful.

 

“Even if the seat's taken...you can have it"

 

The tables were shared by two people through two chairs and Jiwoo would have preferred to sit next to the girl who gave her a smile earlier, but she had already a seatmate, Jiwoo could take it, as their teacher had said, but that would mean she considered the girl to be the cutest, and that would be just weird, why did Mr. Choi had to make it hard for her?

 

“Why don’t you seat next to Ten? Yeri get up”

 

“But Mr. Choi!”

 

At the middle, a girl got up huffing which Jiwoo guessed is Yeri while the boy next to her who must be Ten smirked and threw a glance at her then their teacher.

 

However, a small patch of strong blue emerged from the blue sky and entered the classroom’s opened window…it was a blue butterfly, Jiwoo followed where the blue butterfly was fluttering its wings to with her gaze. It alighted on a table with one more vacant seat, it flapped as it settled there and Jiwoo could have sworn it flapped slowly she counted three times of the gesture. Jiwoo fluttered her eyes and without knowing it, she was already standing by the table where the butterfly was resting.

 

There was a collective ‘Oooh’ inside the classroom, and the butterfly left the table along with the memory of it, that was when Jiwoo realized what she just did.

 

She looked around and everyone was staring at her, some were smiling, some were frowning and some were just waiting what she would do next.

 

And the owner of the seat next to where she had chosen outside of her own volition was a jet black haired girl with eyes shaped menacingly glaring at her.

 

Their eyes met.

 

Her heart beat stopped for a moment and both looked away and her heart beat went back but pumped faster she could feel the warm blood on her cheeks.

 

“Just sit there Ms. Kim…” Mr. Choi instructed from across the room. He seemed upset.

 

Was it because she didn’t follow his instruction to sit next to that Ten guy? But Jiwoo didn’t mean it, she really don’t.

 

The other girl shifted, crossed her legs and clasped her hands together, body leaning away, chin tilted up and cold eyes darting at their homeroom teacher, she seemed rather upset too.

 

Somehow it felt that Jiwoo did something wrong even though she doesn’t know what it is.

 

Jiwoo would have chosen another seat if it weren’t for the fact that she was already standing there inched away and with Mr. Choi’s permission, she allowed herself to sit next to an obviously unwelcoming girl.

 

Throughout the class, no one between them had said anything, Jiwoo wouldn’t start it and the girl had made it silently clear that she didn’t want to exert effort on exchanging words either.

 

And the more Jiwoo had thought it over…the more she realized that she was the most rightful one to be upset in this room.

 

Mr. Choi’s class ended and her seatmate stood up leaving the classroom, another girl went on to fill the vacant seat the former left. She was the girl smiling earlier.

 

“Hi…I’m Haseul, welcome to Eden High…you must be the city girl we are hearing about”

 

“Hearing about?”

 

Since the school was built to house every student in the town, it was easy to learn changes, like a change in breeze and everyone would have learned why. In Jiwoo’s case, it all came from the principal’s office’s student assistant who was so eager to tell her friends that someone new from the city had enrolled.

 

Before they could go deeper though, the next teacher had already arrived and Jiwoo’s seatmate was back to her seat being all silent and aloof. Small talks come naturally to Jiwoo, she can start conversations any day even with the most silent student back in her previous school, it felt wrong to have not exchange words for this long but Jiwoo didn’t want to sort it out either.

 

It finally became loud at lunch time and Jiwoo thought for a second that everything was right. Haseul had invited her to join with their group and learned their names; Heejin and Yerim, sweet and cheerful girls they were, she gave them all chocolates and everyone just went brighter, she giggled with them, chocolates always do the work. It was fun being with them, she was the center of most of their questions of course, the perks of being new; what is her favorite place, how many concerts had she gone to, how is it at night in the city, if the city is polluted, then their conversation went back to the most recent occurrence in Jiwoo’s life

 

“Hey Jiwooming…” Yerim called on her, already giving her nickname off of her pretty smile, Yerim’s words, not hers’. It was nice. “I heard you took the seat beside Sooyoung unnie”

 

“Sooyoung?” Jiwoo asked, dumbfounded

 

“Your seatmate” Haseul answered

 

The owner of the name had treated her like she didn’t even see her, knowing her name wasn’t a luxury that she could afford.

 

“You’re seatmates with her?” Heejin asked mouth agape.

 

“Ye-yeah…she’s my seatmate, why?” Jiwoo asked afraid of what will be Heejin’s answer.

 

“Heejin here thinks she’s the she-devil because she smokes and wears pants for uniform” Haseul interjected, making Jiwoo recall back what the girl was wearing earlier.

 

“You make me sound like a witch hunting when I’m not…I have my reasons okay”

 

Haseul took something out from her lunch bag, a vacuum flask and a cup, she opened the lid and gave Yerim the cup “And that’s because she stole Hyunjin from you right?” Haseul asked back and poured herself what seemed to be a tea on the flask’s lid.

 

“Oh tea…my favorite part of the break!” Yerim sitting beside Haseul offered the cup for pouring.

 

“Do you want some Jiwoo?” Haseul asked offering her drink with the lid.

 

Jiwoo accepted it with a smile and gave her thanks, she took a sip of the hot beverage, allowing her brain to process what Haseul just said to Heejin. She frowned in more confusion “She stole you whom? What did she do to you?” Her voice rose with curiosity and worry.

 

“No one…it was a natural process of friends…falling out of their friendships and finding new ones” Heejin said in dejection.

 

“You are being dramatic Heejin…Hyunjin told me herself she wants to talk to you but you won’t respond back…this is clearly on you child” Haseul said, putting period on the conversation.

 

Heejin gasped audibly and puffed out her cheeks in frustration, scoffing her attention away from them.

 

Way to go for Jiwoo’s first lunch break in her new school, it felt like it was her who brought the damp in their conversation. She took another sip of Haseul’s tea, it suddenly tasted bitterer.

 

“Our class heard what teacher Choi asked you to do for you assigned seat…we think you are dope for making an ass out of him” Yerim blurted out, thankfully breaking the tension on their table.

 

“Language Yerim” Haseul warned.

 

“What? That's how they say it…”

 

Jiwoo chuckled and recalled the moment a bit on her head, thinking of something blue “It was the blue butterfly…what’s it called again?”

 

No one seemed to understand so she just let it go.

 

“All ‘dopiness’ aside…I think you should be informed Jiwoo…of who owns that seat before you…” Haseul trailed, grasping her thermos and pulling it in.

 

“Who?” Jiwoo waited.

 

No one answered with a name but just Haseul pointing her head to the direction leading to a bulletin board on the wall. There were many things posted in it, but perhaps the thing that Jiwoo caught the most was a missing girl’s poster wearing the same uniform as theirs.

 

“Chaewon, she’s been missing since the start of the school year, Sooyoung and her are close too as far as I can tell...but that’s just Chaewon…she easily can get close to people”

 

Jiwoo stared at the missing poster harder, the idea of a missing girl that could have been in this premises at this moment had not yet really sank in but before she could really mull over it, suddenly a girl stood right beside their table holding a bottle, spilled its content right at her face, and then leaving without saying a word.

 

Jiwoo was frozen on the spot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My last daily update for awhile, I'l be back though. I seriously appreciate to have your feed back guys, so comment away.


	4. Wild Flower

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jiwoo finally got to talk to Sooyoung

 

_“It’s soy sauce”_

 

_“How did Hyejoo even get this?”_

 

_“You saw who did it?”_

 

_“I did…she’s my classmate I know how she looks”_

 

“Jiwoo….are you alright?”

 

Jiwoo’s world snapped back to her current reality, having been shut down when a warm liquid hit her face and trickled down to her body, her uniform having been to suffer.

 

Now they were shuffling inside a small comfort room, trying to get it fixed, spraying her perfume to get rid of the stench.

 

“What am I saying? Of course you’re not, your uniform is a mess...I don’t think we can take the stains off” Haseul said, eyes quivering trying to read her face. To which Jiwoo felt wasn’t any calmer.

 

“I’ll borrow someone’s hoodie so we can at least cover it right?” Yerim said giving her a comforting smile.

 

But Jiwoo couldn’t feel any better, she’s glad that these girls are helping her yet why is she not feeling any better?

 

 

Her hands were trembling; she only realized it as she stopped Haseul’s hands from trying to wash off the stain again. “Thank you guys…I’m glad I met you all today…I really do…but…I think I want to be alone for a while” She gave them her sincerest smile, wishing that it would do to make their worries vanish.

 

Heejin was about to say something but Haseul nodded and agreed with what she wanted.

 

Slowly, they all left.

 

And Jiwoo found herself staring back at her mess of a self on the mirror, graffiti of x x drawn with red marker were on the mirror that coincided where her eyes were, shifting her gaze, on the wall was written in red again, telling people to go kill their selves.

 

 _‘You deserve it’_ Another one written on the wall, the way they were written were the same, the same color of marker and the way they were scribbled.

 

The graffiti seemed fairly new, and so was the paint of the bathroom.

 

No matter how much the new paint covers all these vandalisms, the dead roots will always show themselves, and so are vulnerable memories.

 

Abruptly…like a volcano’s pit that had been brewing for eruption, Jiwoo’s pit forced her tears out from her eyes.

 

This room was killing her.

 

No, it was the whole place.

 

Covering her face, her legs brought her away from people, away from sounds, she doesn’t know where she will be led.

 

Jiwoo just wanted to be away.

 

She pushed a door open, to where, she doesn’t know, but it led her outside.

 

Free of unnecessary noise and people, she took her phone out and dialed Gyuri’s number shakily. The latter answered and when she heard Jiwoo’s trembling voice, she cooed at her, told her she’s going to be fine and that they miss each other already.

 

Jiwoo called Wooyoung next, but a few rings and he declined the call. She would have said that she was expecting that, but it didn’t matter because it still made her sob harder "Stupid Wooyoung”

 

Finally, after staring at her father’s caller ID for a while, she pressed call.

 

_“What is it Jiwoo?”_

 

Jiwoo thought for a while, she has a lot to say, she couldn’t do it like her father does, always ending in a few cold words.

 

So she went for the easier question “Why?...Why did you send me here?” She asked, her tears stopping.

 

_“You haven’t talked to your mother?”_

 

“I haven’t-”

 

_“Then you should…I need to go, they are waiting for my report”_

 

“I…I wish you'd talk to me differently” Jiwoo bit her quivering lip.

 

The line was silent, she heard her father taking a deep breath before saying goodbye and taking off of the line.

 

There were birds’ chirping and the rustles of the leaves, making her more aware where she is now; she looked behind where she came out from and found that she was at the back of their school’s building. Under her feet was a pavement of white marbled stones outlining patch of untrimmed green grass no distinguishable to the outgrowth bushes, and wildflowers sprouting everywhere.

 

Then there was a shuffling behind her and a loud sigh.

 

Jiwoo swiftly turned around.

 

It’s Sooyoung.

 

“I thought I was back in the house hearing my mother’s favorite afternoon soap when I woke up still in school… imagine my disappointment that I’m still three hours away from actually leaving this place” The girl stood up from the brown bench, showing her real height which is probably inches taller than Jiwoo herself.

 

Haseul was right, she’s wearing her uniform paired not with a pleated skirt like the rest but a pair of trousers that seemingly tailored for her long legs, her hands hidden on its pockets.

 

Their eyes met again.

 

And as soon as they did, she turned her gaze away. The image of the girl’s long wavy hair that was a bit disheveled framed her pretty face perfectly that she couldn’t clear her mind of it.

 

“I-I’m sorry for disturbing you” She looked down, avoiding the other girl’s gaze

 

Jiwoo was stuck on her place somehow.

 

Waiting for the girl to say something back.

 

Why was Jiwoo waiting for it?

 

The wind breezed between them, carrying with it a wild dark red flower fallen out of its stem.

 

Jiwoo’s hair was swept along it, she fixed her hair fast, tugging the strands behind her ear.

 

_‘And she said ‘butterflies are crazy about flowers right?’ And then tugged a red flower on my ear’_

 

Jiwoo felt so embarrassed, hiding away her messy uniform was in vain too, yet she couldn’t help but keep on tugging on the stained part, desperately trying to make it somehow vanish.  

 

Thank goodness Heejin sprayed perfume on her face and neck; at least she didn’t smell like dumplings.

 

“You look a mess” Sooyoung said.

 

Jiwoo didn’t have to be reminded, especially by _her_. She wiped her eyes off her tears, and glanced back at Sooyoung, the girl didn’t even have any makeup on, yet the shape of her eyes, her tall nose and her plump red lips looked like carefully carved by the goddesses one by one to make perfection of a face.

 

She’s too pretty.

 

Jiwoo found it hard to breathe.

 

“But I know a place to fix you up, come on” Sooyoung said to her and didn’t wait for an answer as she turned around and started taking her steps.

 

Jiwoo didn’t move for a while, trying to process what the other girl just told her, but like an enchanted moth to the light of a fire, she followed anyway. Sooyoung lead her across the back of their school building, she can feel the sundry shapes of rocks stabbing at her black shoes as they thread passed untrimmed grass, it was lucky that she wore a pair of black long socks today or she would have itched already by now.

 

But that’s pointless, somehow Jiwoo feel like she had done it a countless times before as if used to doing this before when in the city she only walked through puddles and dusty pavement, and through empty chips’ packet everywhere. Like the sound of the grass rustling as they walk past it or the birds’ singing, and the loud flitter of insects was something she was so used hearing about on a fine warm afternoon.

 

Jiwoo stared at Sooyoung’s back, leading her away from the school’s building and to shorter patches of grass. What’s in the latter’s head? She badly wants to know, to listen to it, to learn from it. They followed a trodden path that was leading to a black gate that foregrounds rows of tall and lush trees behind. Jiwoo saw Sooyoung entered the gate, while she stopped on her tracks.

 

_‘What am I doing?’_

 

She asked herself, uncertainties sending signals to her body to get cautious, and the memory of Mr. Choi messing with her in their class, and that weird girl at lunch reminding her she had been having bad luck with people on her first day.

 

Sooyoung couldn’t have been any different. Still, the girl seemed to have a grip on her mind, drawing her into her presence, to hear more of what she would say, to see what she would do.

 

A squeak below her turned Jiwoo’s attention to a lone white rabbit, the rabbit stood on its feet and tilted its head, eyes staring at her as if it has something to say, then it turned around and run past the gate and stopped, standing once again on its feet and staring back at Jiwoo, again.

 

It pulled Jiwoo inside, entering the black gate and going past rows of trees, following the tracks and the rabbit when the rabbit ran past someone’s feet and disappeared behind a tall hedgerow, which when Jiwoo raised her gaze belonged none other than to Sooyoung herself.

 

Sooyoung’s lips tugged up on one corner “Got cold feet huh”

 

“I didn’t” Jiwoo croaked, she definitely did.

 

Sooyoung stood at the entrance of what seemed to be a clearing of a hedgerow, on her side are marble statues of angels that seemed to be guarding the place, behind her are lines of even more hedgerows “This is Eve’s Labyrinth, quite the trite right? The school’s owner studied in Europe and learned about complicated mazes there, he wanted to bring it here and had the labyrinth built behind his school” She said answering the question on Jiwoo’s head, then entered the labyrinth.

 

Jiwoo took a breath, and followed Sooyoung this time, cautions disappearing, only curiosity sitting on her mind. They thread on the coursed path, just going where Sooyoung was going.

 

“You’re supposed to solve it and arrive at the center of it, but most students can’t…so now it’s just…” Sooyoung trailed and turned towards her, a brow rising and whispered “You hear that?”

 

Jiwoo tried focusing on her hearing sense, minding her surroundings when she heard faint moans.

 

She shivered.

 

Sooyoung crouched down and picked up an adrift rock under the hedgerow and took a peek at the corner before turning back at her “It’s Ten and some girl…want to interrupt them?” She asked, offering Jiwoo the rock she picked

 

“What? Why would I do that?” Jiwoo hissed, not really wanting to mess with other’s business, especially other’s people’s sex business, as what she could infer from the now getting louder noise.

 

“I’m getting close…Nancy I- Ouch! Fuck! Who did that?”

 

It was in a split of seconds; Sooyoung was just facing her earlier before she rolled her eyes, turned around and threw the rock like a pitcher.

 

Sooyoung grabbed her wrist and laughed “Because it’s fun…” she said and dragged her to run “That was a TEN bitch!” She shouted for the last time.

 

Jiwoo didn’t know what that means but now Ten screamed back with more curses and was probably on his way to catch them.

 

She kept up her pace or rather dragged to, as Sooyoung was a fast runner and one with such long legs. They turned on the only available corner into a straight path before running to a crossway a few more feet away, either go straight, left or right, Sooyoung without a doubt went left, and turned again, a few more turns around the hedgerow before entering a point area where another statue of a winged angel stood.

 

The both of them plopped down behind a hedgerow, it was Sooyoung who laughed first before Jiwoo could admit it herself that it was indeed fun.

 

“People always go right” Sooyoung said as their laughter died down and started catching up her breath “So go left when you are avoiding someone and right when you are looking for someone”   

 

Jiwoo laughed again in the middle of catching her own breath “Who said that?”

 

“Me” Sooyoung proudly said.

 

“What makes you think you’re right?”

 

“We lost Ten didn’t we? He won’t be finding us, I’m sure of it” Sooyoung held her grin as she closed her eyes and leaned on the hedge, her chest going up and down.

 

It gave Jiwoo an unsolicited chance to study her face more admitting to herself that the latter looked peaceful, so different from the attitude she just showcased before.

 

Her breathing evened and it became silent, it was just the sound of them breathing, and perhaps some birds which Jiwoo realized were perched on the marble angel statue, countless of them in fact, on the ridges of its wings, on its shoulders, on its head and feet.

 

And they did it again, these creatures had been making her feel welcomed and accompanied since she arrived at this rather strange place.

 

She was thankful.

 

And to the person beside her.

 

“Hey take off your blouse”

 

Jiwoo turned to Sooyoung gasping and was even more shocked to see the girl taking her own blouse off “What are you doing?” Jiwoo scooted away and crossed her arms on her chest, protecting herself.

 

“What? We are exchanging blouses, you can’t go back to class with soy sauce stain on your top, you don’t want to be called the soy sauce girl for the rest of the school year right?”

 

“Ohh…” It finally dawned on Jiwoo and cleared her chest of the nerves and of her arms, now there was only embarrassment “I’m sorry I thought…”

 

“I’m not as dirty as Ten…sex is supposed to be done in respect right? In a respectful place”

 

Still Jiwoo couldn’t look at her in the eyes and the warmness on her cheeks wouldn’t go away and she had never had sex, what does she know about it anyway? Although Sooyoung said her words quite beautifully.

 

“Here” Sooyoung offered her a clean white blouse uniform, and Jiwoo wasn’t able to keep her eyes on it as she glanced at the bold girl, top free with her black bra on. She quickly kept her gaze on herself.

 

After Jiwoo took the top Sooyoung was offering, the latter pulled a lighter and a cigarette from her pocket, it was thinner and unbranded, something she had never seen her father smoked before, thinking before that maybe people smoke the same cigarettes.

 

Sooyoung sat there carefree and started smoking, while Jiwoo turned her back and started taking her top off, replacing it with the stain-free uniform that the bolder girl had, it was a fit. She must have more meat than the owner.  

 

Jiwoo gave hers’ to Sooyoung who started wearing it while her white stick clamped between her lips, the latter still hadn’t finished her cigarette, as the lines on her face grew even calmer. She seemed to not have the thought to leave yet.

 

On Jiwoo’s side, on the hedge, there were flowers growing, she picked up two small white flowers and smelled it, there was no smell compared to the popular belief she heard that all flowers smelled nice, she tugged it on her ear, she smiled to herself.

 

“You’re quite strange” Sooyoung said to her last.

 

Although Jiwoo didn’t understand that, she put it in herself to smile as wide as possible and took it as a compliment.

 

“Thank you…Sooyoung for the uniform….”

 

_‘And for making me happy’_

 

Jiwoo went back to their class that day with a calmer face and a serene smile even Haseul noticed it and was happy that she saw her again looking much better. Sooyoung, however, told her she would cut class and chose not to attend their remaining classes for the day.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

Besides the expansive Labyrinth behind Eden High, there’s also a grove just beside the building. Behind a particular tree, cigarette smoke fade up as a girl with stained uniform was loitering there, sitting like a king between the tree’s overgrowth.

 

The girl took out her expensive latest smartphone and started texting someone.

 

After a few minutes, and few more puffs of her personally rolled cigarette, her phone vibrated.

 

_‘Yeah, I heard what happened at the cafeteria; Yerim told me it was Hyejoo who went crazy over the new girl and threw soy sauce on her…y’d you ask?’_

 

 

The girl read the text, to which she only answered with _‘I need my Robin’_

 

* * *

 

 

The sun was starting to set, to which the sky began transitioning its color ranging from pink to orange, the warm orange rays hitting beautifully across the town and into the windows of Eden High.

 

A black haired student came out of a certain room, on her back was her black backpack, footsteps echoing through the empty hallways as all the students had left beside her, just how she likes it.

 

The lone girl pulled her feet into a determined path that led her right in front of a particular locker, she examined it and sighed in relief when it seemed untouched.

 

“You’ve always been weird…but you just got to one-up yourself”

 

The girl briskly turned around, the unwanted presence’s face was hidden by the dimmed hallway but the figure was illuminated by the setting sun’s light passing through the windows, it was a girl with long wavy hair but wearing a trouser instead. There’s only one person in their school who wears their uniform like that.

 

She ignored the snooper, turning to her other side when another figure emerged, avoiding the latter, she turned around again, fleeing to the other side when she was thrown onto the lockers with a force of a whole body darting towards her. She was pushed through her collars, brown eyes piercing at her.

 

“You’ve been checking Chaewon’s locker…everyday…without a miss, and today…you went for the new transferee…that’s because she took Chaewon’s seat right? What are you hiding punk? What do you know about Chaewon? Are you her crazy stalker?”

 

She can feel the opposing body forcing her weight on her as to intimidate her, the hands gripping on her collar almost choking her. She glared at her opponent; she hated her, with all her being. She had never entertained anyone’s question, except for Chaewon, and she wouldn’t start now, especially her.

 

Especially _her_

 

So what she did, the only thing she could do, pull her throat and spit hard at the one choking her, earning her a hard clock on her left cheek making her fall right on the ground.

 

“Disgusting piece of shit!”

 

She saw a shadow of a leg about to hit her but no contact was made, she looked up and saw the other’s partner holding her down “Stop it Sooyoung…Hyejoo is still the Gov’s daughter”

 

“The governor is shit! Just like her, listen freak, if I learned you have something to do with Chaewon missing…I am going to kill you! You hear me? I’ll kill you with my bare hands”

 

The fallen girl clenched her fists and her jaws, the sting on her face was nothing with the yapping of the mad girl in front of her, she’s annoying, and has always been. She brought herself up, and stared at Sooyoung, she would be put in her place “You’re just a loud mouth Sooyoung, your words are as useless as your own insignificant, pathetic, burnt out druggie self, you lost Chaewon because you never deserve her in the first place”

 

She saw how Sooyoung’s face changed, so drastic that perhaps she went too far, although deep down she knew the latter had it coming.

 

As quickly, she rid herself of remorse when the threatening girl earlier became limp, shoulders slumped, her head down, and her long hair mournfully cloaking her face. She looked even more beaten than Hyejoo herself.

 

But it was the chance she took, Hyejoo left, saving herself from more trouble. Walking away from a mess she would rather not have again. She touched her left cheek that was stinging with pain and felt tears rolling down on it. She wasn’t crying because of the pain, no, it was a different pain, something that ice couldn’t possibly mend.

 

How could she use Chaewon’s name so carelessly like that?

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forget what I said last chapter...it's another fast update! But this one's gonna be the last, I couldn't have possibly hang ya'll up last chapter. I won't be updating for a while so I hope for patience and anticipation for the next chapters. 


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